Dear Church:

I am excited by the spiritually refreshing nature of our services in recent weeks! I also believe that we all appreciate the physical freshness of our improved-look sanctuary, so please let me reiterate my sincere appreciation on behalf of our entire church toward all who were involved in sprucing up the sanctuary.

“We will not neglect the house of our God.” ~ Nehemiah 10:39b

This month, please begin aggressively inviting friends, family, coworkers, classmates, acquaintances, neighbors, and anyone else you can think of to our special Easter Sunday RESURRECTION CELEBRATION SERVICE, March 23, at 10:00 a.m. The children of Life CHRISTIAN CENTER will be assisting me in delivering the gospel message through a special dramatization, and I would like us to pack the house of God with all who need so see and hear that gospel message! I anticipate a service that is perhaps shorter in duration than a typical Sunday morning, as well as a crowd that is larger – so please come early – both to pray and to get a good seat!

As part of the follow-up to Easter, our church will have some important developments occurring. Statistically-speaking, those who come to God and become active in church have a very large success and retention rate in serving Him when they faithfully complete a Christian Discipleship Class that includes foundational Christian doctrine. For the majority of us who were not raised in church, that means these types of classes are not optional if we are expected to remain firm in our faith.

Therefore, we will be offering a modified and updated version of what has been called in the past, Christianity 101. All who come into our church need to go through this important subject matter since it involves a clear, practical survey of the basic and foundational elements of Christian faith, doctrine, and practice. On Tuesday, March 25, we will commence with this very, very important ministry. This Christian Discipleship Class will be held every Tuesday (unless otherwise noted in advance) and will be approximately 45 minutes long, beginning at 6:45 p.m. – ending around 7:30 p.m., so that those involved in it have the opportunity to join the rest of us in the sanctuary for the conclusion of our mid-week service. I will begin a special series that same Tuesday in the sanctuary specifically geared to assist your personal evangelism.

In April we will enjoy a brief series of exciting services with the return of Eli & Kathy Hernandez. Sunday, April 13, through Tuesday, April 15, we will believe God for a great outpouring of His Spirit and other miracles, signs, and wonders! Given the skilled and passionate music ministry of Sis. Kathy Hernandez and the spiritually-gifted ministry God has given Bro. Eli Hernandez, I encourage you to submit your taxes early so you don’t have a conflict with these important meetings… and tell those you bring with you to do the same!

If you look at our upcoming church calendar, there is no time like the present to GO into all YOUR world to make disciples of Jesus Christ! Good Friday Communion Service, Easter Sunday RESURRECTION CELEBRATION SERVICE, Christian Discipleship Class, Tuesday evangelism teaching series, evangelistic meetings with Eli & Kathy Hernandez… Add in the amped up kidLife curriculum, dynamism of the teenLifers, and the coming revamp of our adult Lifegroups, and you have a “perfect storm” of resources occurring in the coming weeks to help you personally win souls to the Lord Jesus.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations… ~ Matthew 28:19a

In regard to revamping our small, home group ministries, one thing that I would like to encourage is evangelism among those who speak only (or predominantly) Spanish. If you have friends, family, etc., who would be receptive to this type of informal, home fellowship of prayer and Bible study, please contact Gil Chavez or Robert Avina. This is NOT a group for church folks to fellowship – it is an evangelistic ministry specifically intended to win souls to God and to restore Spanish-speaking backsliders who are not attending church. Because of the purpose of this group, only those in our church who bring Spanish speakers needing to discover the truth of God’s word and be saved will be welcome to attend. You would then be guests of honor and part of the ministry team!

Our annual church business meeting is scheduled for Sunday, March 30, at 5:00 p.m., and the deadline to submit the application for church membership (for anyone wishing to participate in this annual business meeting) is 9:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 11. In accordance with the bylaws of this assembly, only those in our church family who have agreed to the commitment level of the church Membership Covenant are eligible to participate in church business meetings.

Though not required to go to Heaven or to be involved in all our church ministries, the Membership Covenant is nevertheless important. I encourage all who are part of Life CHRISTIAN CENTER to seek formal membership so you may have a vote in matters of importance such as, the ratification of the choice of Senior Pastor and Church Board Members, the buying and selling of church buildings, commentary on church finances, etc. For those who have been born again of water and Spirit and who have successfully completed Christianity 101, request a copy of the Membership Covenant from Natalie Soto in the church office. In addition to its primary spiritual purpose, the updated Christian Discipleship Class beginning in March will be a prerequisite for formal membership in the future.

Thank you to everyone who recently embraced both the spirit and the cause of our Dr Pepper Service on February 24. I am compelled to reiterate the theme that two vital elements of spiritual success and growth include our stewardship of our TIME & MONEY. Taking up our cross and following Jesus is a journey of trust, sacrifice, and love that touches everything of genuine value in our lives – including time and money.

Therefore, in the strongest possible terms, I encourage you to stand firm in consistent, specific, targeted generosity and giving of time and money – for the glory of God, for the benefit of His kingdom, and for your own spiritual growth and personal happiness. With the Dr Pepper Service completed, any who had not previously established such a targeted system of giving (or in some cases, far more than 10 – 2 – 4!) should strive to embrace in faith the 10 – 2 – 4 habit/principle of financial and personal stewardship as a consistent aspect of your Christian discipleship. This is not to earn God’s grace or providence, and neither should it be a ceiling but rather a grateful, cheerful baseline.

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. ~ 2 Corinthians 9:6-8

Those on the front lines of the cause of global missions are depending upon us to be the supply line in this worldwide spiritual battle. You have admirably demonstrated your ability and willingness to rise to the challenge and meet the needs as they are presented on an individual basis. For many, now is the time to go to the next level by way of establishing the ongoing habit of planned/designated giving to advance the work of the church – both locally and globally. I salute and thank you for embracing the virtue of generosity and modeling it for the next generation of disciples!

May God receive with pleasure our acceptable offerings – the fruit of our giving – of time, money, energy, and emotion. God bless.

Pastor Max Manley